Borderline
by Taedae
Summary: Following a night of new experiences, Yugi and Seto come to terms with their complicated feelings for each other, and what that means for their relationship with the Pharaoh.


_**Beta Reader: **venom_for_free  
_

_This piece is a gift for the amazing prettiugli! When we first became friends late last year, we had a discussion about Flareshipping, and that has stuck with me ever since. And thus, this story is in honour of you, our friendship, and your constant love and encouragement!_

_This piece, along with __**all**__ of my other stories (including explicit pieces), can also be found on AO3!_

* * *

A gentle stirring nearby roused Yugi from his slumber. Peeking through his lashes, he turned his head to the side to glance at the clock on the nightstand: _5:43 a.m._ Groaning, he clamped his eyes shut and rolled over, flopping face down onto the center of the bed. It was ... cold? Blinking, he pressed his palms against the mattress and arched his back to inspect the space around him, but all that lay in the middle of the bed were rumpled sheets and an abandoned pillow.

"He left."

Yugi yawned and propped himself up on an elbow to try to rub the sleep from his eyes. "What? When?"

"A while ago."

"Oh." Twisting around so he could snuggle back under the blankets, Yugi pulled them up to cover his exposed chest before turning on his side to look at his bedmate. Seto lay on his back on the other side of the mattress, an arm thrown over his eyes to block out the soft light that had started leaking through the curtains. Though the sight of the CEO's sleep-ruffled hair made Yugi smile slightly, it wasn't enough to keep the hurt out of his voice. "I thought he would have ... said 'goodbye' or something."

Seto's head shifted, and he cracked an eye open, peeking at Yugi from under his arm. "He did," he mumbled, a small smile playing at his own lips. "You were solidly passed out though, and he didn't want to wake you."

Yugi felt his cheeks heat up. "Oh."

Smirking, Seto closed his eye and settled back into his pillow with a small sigh. Not having the CEO's attention on him should have made Yugi feel _less_ embarrassed, but that sound ... Yugi flushed deeper, sure that Seto had done that on purpose.

While both he and Seto had already been in a relationship with Atem for several months, it had started as just that: being with _Atem_, while the two of them remained platonic friends who just _happened_ to share a boyfriend. It wasn't until Yugi had offered to move in so Atem wouldn't be travelling back and forth between the manor and the game shop every day that things started to change.

Though at first Yugi had been given his own room that he'd share with Atem on "his nights" with his partner, it didn't take long for the lines between Yugi and Seto to start blurring. A few weeks later, they found themselves all sleeping in Seto's room permanently. But even then, nothing had happened between the two of them. On nights when Seto was stuck working late, Atem and Yugi would go to bed together and have their fun before Seto returned home. And on the rare nights in which Seto wasn't tied up at the office, Yugi would leave the two of them alone to have some time together while he played games, watched TV, or went out for the evening with friends.

No discussion needed. They all fell into the pattern easily.

However, what once were private moments of flirtation and intimacy with the Pharaoh, over time became things that happened in front of _both_ of his lovers. Atem just slowly stopped splitting his time between the two, and neither Yugi nor Seto bothered questioning it. Why would they? In the end, it meant they were both getting more time with the Pharaoh than they had been previously.

Though it had been a bit of an adjustment, to actually _see_ Atem kiss and touch his other partner. Both Yugi and Seto had to quickly learn to curb their jealousy and come to terms with the facts that they had been able to subconsciously shove aside before Yugi had moved in.

But since then, they had all come a long way. A lot further along than either Yugi or Seto could have ever anticipated.

Seto shifted again, snapping Yugi out of his thoughts. Blinking, he focused on the CEO to find Seto sitting up, the smooth skin of his back exposed as he stretched his arms high over his head. Yugi watched the muscles under Seto's skin ripple from the movements, and swallowed as memories from last night of Atem's other lover hovering over them flashed through his mind.

If the lines had merely been blurring before, now they were nearly erased entirely.

Then Seto stood, and Yugi's eyes widened before he quickly turned his head away, his face burning. Seto always slept in the nude, which didn't bother Yugi when they were all _under_ the covers. In fact, technically it didn't bother him at all, at least not the way it once would have, but now he was feeling a whole _other_ kind of _bother_ from the sight of Seto's body.

Suddenly Yugi was very grateful to be laying on his side.

But, of course, Seto didn't miss a thing. He'd clearly caught Yugi's reaction in his peripheral vision, as evidenced by the smirk in his voice. "Atem wasn't the only one called in. Honda and Mokuba were too."

Yugi stared determinedly at the ceiling, willing his voice to be as calm as possible. "Big break in the case?"

"Possibly." Seto crossed the room, his already soft footfalls becoming nearly silent in the plush carpet as he retrieved his robe from the back of the ensuite bathroom door. "But you know he wouldn't be able to tell us anything about it either way."

Yes, Yugi was aware. Sometimes it was difficult to have conversations with the three of them because they couldn't exactly talk much about their work life. Atem and Honda had been partners at the Domino Police Station since the start of their careers a few years ago, but Mokuba was new to the "hush, hush" world of law enforcement, having only officially started working as a lawyer around the same time that Atem had started dating Yugi and Seto.

Yugi sighed. "Yeah, I know."

Feeling a dip in the mattress next to him, Yugi turned his head to find the CEO—having concealed himself in the fluffy fabric of his robe—had returned to the bed with two fresh mugs of coffee. _Oh, bless Isono,_ Yugi thought as he smiled at Seto and sat up to accept one of the still steaming cups. The head manservant of the manor and business advisor to Kaiba Corp was not only incredibly good at his job but also really cared about Seto and Mokuba, and by extension, now the Mutous as well. Yugi couldn't comprehend how the older man didn't even bat an eye at the strange relationship between the three of them, but he was grateful regardless.

The two sat silently, sipping their coffee as the sun slowly rose above the horizon, and Yugi found his mind wandering again. Back to last night ...

To when his back had been pressed against the mattress, sweat beading on his skin. To Atem moving over him while being buried deep inside him. To Seto, on his knees behind Atem, his long body stretched out over both of them as he moved with them, pounding into the Pharaoh—

"Yugi?"

Startled, Yugi nearly spilled his now forgotten coffee on the sheets as he jolted, his head shooting up to see Seto watching him, a smirk on his lips.

"What?"

Seto chuckled and reached over, snagging the mug from the shorter man's hands. "Perhaps you don't need this today? You're already plenty jumpy without it."

Yugi flushed at the tease. "T-that's not fair. You startled me."

"Hm, from _what_, I wonder?"

His jaw dropped open at the look on Seto's face. He knew he had Yugi cornered and he was enjoying this moment far too much. It wouldn't matter if Yugi admitted what he'd been thinking about or not, either way, Seto won. Besides, the twinkle in the CEO's eyes made it evident that he already knew the answer.

Huffing in an almost childlike manner, Yugi crossed his arms and leaned back against his pillow, frowning. "That's not fair either."

A moment of silence. Then Seto sighed. "Yugi. Look at me."

Reluctantly, Yugi turned his head to find Seto had put both the mugs aside and was gazing at him with a much softer expression. All signs of teasing were gone, but the small smile that remained on his face was absolutely beautiful.

Yugi blinked and drew in a shaky breath. "Seto—"

"We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"But—"

"What?" Seto chuckled and shifted closer to Yugi, taking up the middle of the bed. Atem's spot. "When have we ever talked about any of this? It's worked out pretty well so far, hasn't it?"

Despite himself, Yugi smiled. "I know, but—"

"But nothing," Seto whispered, reaching over to softly brush his slender fingers along Yugi's cheek. "We don't need to define _any_ of this. It is what we choose it to be, between the three of us. Nothing else matters."

Yugi swallowed, finding it impossible to tear his gaze away from CEO's. "But the media—"

"Can fuck right off."

He laughed, and Seto grinned as he trailed his hand along Yugi's jawline, down his neck, over his shoulder and his upper chest before changing direction and weaving down his arm. Their eyes never once strayed from each other as his hand finally came to a stop after linking his fingers through Yugi's.

Seto was right. Whatever did or didn't happen between the three of them was no one else's business. Sure, _eventually_ the news would get out since they were all public figures, but other people's opinions and judgments couldn't take away what they all felt for each other, whatever that was. Besides, did it really matter if they weren't quite sure what was happening between them right now? Hadn't the world already bestowed them all with enough labels as it was?

Biting his lip nervously, Yugi softly squeezed Seto's hand. "Do you think ... Atem will mind?"

Smirking, Seto shifted even closer and leaned down, touching the tip of his nose to Yugi's before replying in a husky voice, "He didn't seem to care last night, now did he?"

Yugi blushed. No, Atem certainly hadn't seemed to mind _at all_ last night. Throwing caution to the wind, he swallowed his nerves and closed the gap between them, pressing his lips to Seto's with a soft sigh.

They didn't need any labels. All they needed was each other.

* * *

"Welcome home," Isono greeted Atem respectfully, bowing as he held the door open for the Pharaoh.

Atem nodded, smiling as he stepped through the threshold. "Are they awake?"

"Not that I am aware, sir. They haven't left the bedroom."

"Alright. Thank you, Isono. That'll be all."

Isono bowed once more before closing the door and heading for the kitchen, likely to get breakfast started, Atem suspected. It was still relatively early in the morning, however—though it was only 7:13 a.m.—the Pharaoh already felt like he'd worked nearly a full day. They'd been called into the station at dumb o'clock in the morning, and the sheer amount of nonsense he and Honda had had to deal with in the last three hours had been ridiculous. Though, regardless of how tired he was, Atem felt worse for Mokuba, who was still at the station.

The poor kid was in for a long day with his client.

Shrugging out of his jacket and unbuckling his utility belt, Atem hung them up by the door before making his way upstairs to check on his lovers.

Last night had been ... different. Amazing, but uncharted territory for all three of them. He only hoped that his disappearance this morning wouldn't negatively affect Yugi. Seto had seemed fine with it all when he'd kissed them both before leaving for the station—the CEO being semi-conscious at the time—but neither of his partners had signed up for being romantically involved with _each other_ when their little triangle had started.

Atem softened his steps as he drew closer to the bedroom in case they were both still asleep, and paused at the door for a moment to listen. He didn't hear anything, but that was a good sign though, right? They weren't fighting, at least. Placing his hand on the handle, he slowly turned it and gently pushed the door open.

The room was filled with muted, hazy light that leaked in through the still closed curtains, but that was more than enough to see what waited for him on the mattress. Yugi and Seto were deep asleep, the shorter of the two curled up like a kitten in the CEO's arms. Atem quietly entered the room and shut the door before approaching the bed to get a closer look at them.

They looked so adorable together.

The Pharaoh smiled. It was apparent by the fact that Seto was now in his robe and that Yugi was no longer under the covers, being the blanket hog that his aibou usually was, that they'd both been awake at some point before his return. Which meant this moment wasn't an accident.

The sight of his two lovers so comfortable together made Atem's heart sing, and he just stood there for a while, gazing down at the two most important men in his life.

This was perfect.

_They_—all three of them—were perfect together.

* * *

_Thanks for much for reading! If you want ask me questions, chat about the newest stories/chapters, or even just want to have a place to connect with other people in the Yu-Gi-Oh fandom, you are more than welcome to join me on Discord! For a server invite, PM me, leave a review, reach out to me on Discord (Taedae#7683), or on any of my socials (listed on my profile)._


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